Book 4: Spirit
by PaintedinAllColors
Summary: Mei is kidnapped, and others have been disappearing too. Ozai is plotting something, with the help of the greatest enemy of the Avatar. Aang and his friends must journey to the Spirit World to rescue Mei and a long lost relative...
1. Chapter 1

Me: I'm back with a ridiculously short prologue, but it will be awesome! People of , meet my ELA independant writing project!(its a fanfic and I no own SO YOU CAN'T SUE ME GOVERNMENT!)

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><p>The torches set in the wall cast a dim, flickering light. The sound of his footsteps were magnified by the metal floor, and echoed throughout the corridor. The hooded figure stopped at a door set into a steel wall and lifted his hood briefly, confirming his identity to the two guards stationed there to guard the most dangerous prisoner in the world. They nodded respectfully when they realized who it was, and stepped aside. He paused at the door, seemingly debating whether or not to enter. The man opened the door and stepped into the cell.<p>

The flickering torches cast long, eerie shadows that concealed most of the cell. Yet he could still see the silhouette of his father, sitting in the center of the metal cage in the cell, the only cell in this particular prison. The prison that had been built to house him and him alone, isolated from the rest of the world for its safety.

"Ozai," the newcomer spoke. The lone prisoner lifted his head.

"Well, well, well, the new Fire Lord has come to visit a humble prisoner. I'm so honored," the prisoner spoke mockingly, in bitter tones. "Sorry to disappoint you, son, but, no matter what you do to me, no matter how many times you ask me, I will not tell you where your mother is."

Without a word, the visitor left the cell, never looking back. The prisoner watched him leave, and smirked in the darkness. He would come back, and by not telling him, the prisoner had completed part of his part in this play. Soon, everything would be his again.

"Soon, you'll be the one in the cell," the prisoner whispered, smiling at the thought of the things his son didn't know, things that would help him get rid of the Avatar, things that would return him to his rightful state and more.

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><p><span>Wasn't kidding when I said it was short. I made it soo much longer than the original though! And I got 100 for it on ELA, so you know it's gonna be good! But review! Actually, I don't give a damn if you review or not, I'll keep posting anyway. But reviews are nice...<span>

I'm hungry... so bye~! DINNER AWAITS ME!


	2. Chapter 2

Me: Sorry Avatar fans who were reading this...I'm so sorry for abandoning it for so long. =( But I'm back and with a new chapter, so it's really all good~! And if you think I own this, you are INSANE! But I do own some Oreos. Yummy... And here it is!

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><p>"Zuko! We haven't seen you in ages! How are you?" exclaimed Suki, welcoming him into the house everyone shared in the Earth Kingdom capital, Ba Sing Se.<p>

"Hi, Suki. Is everyone else here? I have a few important things to tell you about," Zuko greeted her.

"Yeah, everyone's here, including your Uncle Iroh. What's so important that you rushed over her to tell us?" she replied, ushering him through the door. He walked down the familiar hallway towards the living room, where he knew everyone would be.

Aang was playing with Momo, his flying lemur-bat, while Sokka was painting. It had been a hobby of his since the war ended two years ago. But just because he had been doing it for two years didn't mean he was any good at it. He hadn't improved at all. For example, what was supposed to be a bowl of fruit looked like a bunch of colorful aliens in a large, misshapen crater. Ty Lee was practicing flips and handstands on the veranda, Toph was sleeping, and Katara was sewing something. And, judging from the smell in the kitchen, his uncle was probably trying, and failing, to cook.

"Hey, Zuko!" everyone greeted him, just noticing that he had walked through the hallway and was standing there.

"Hi guys. Look, I know you want to talk and catch up and stuff, but this is really important. Something bad has happened, and I need you guys to listen and tell me what you know," Zuko told them, effectively pausing the annoying questions in favor of a more serious matter.

"So what is it? It's got to be really important if it makes you visit us all the way in Ba Sing Se. It is pretty far from the Fire Nation capital," Toph said, turning to face him. Everyone else temporarily abandoned their current tasks to listen to what he had to say.

"Have any of you heard of people mysteriously going missing?" he asked them, a serious expression on his face.

"Missing? Like disappeared? Kidnapped?" Sokka clarified.

"Well done, genius," Zuko said, rolling his eyes.

"I haven't heard anything," Aang said, frowning at this new development.

"You guys haven't heard anything because you stay here, in the Upper Ring, Twinkle Toes. I've heard them 'cuz I go to the Lower and Middle Rings more. It's the one where people alone disappear at midnight, every night, right?" Toph asked, hoping her response wouldn't be confirmed.

"Yes, that's the one. And I think-,"

"Zuko!" Ty Lee squealed, cutting off the Fire Lord. "Where's Mai?"

"Like I was saying before I was interrupted," Zuko gave Ty Lee a dirty look, "I think Mai was taken by whoever or whatever is doing this. She was at the spa, while I…visited someone. Her session ended ten minutes to midnight, and we were supposed to meet at a restaurant. But she never showed up, and she went alone. It takes about fifteen minutes to walk from the spa to the restaurant."

"Maybe she was just late, Zuko," Aang told him.

"She wasn't. I waited there until the restaurant closed, and she never showed up," Zuko shot down that theory.

"She got tired and went back to the palace?" Ty Lee offered.

"She wasn't there when I got back."

"This is like the blood-bending thing all over again," Katara shuddered at the memory.

"Yeah, but if Toph heard of it, then it's happening here too. And the blood-bender only targeted Fire Nation people. And it wasn't even a full moon. All waterbenders need a full moon to be able to blood-bend. You do, and the old hag did, too," Sokka pointed out. "Really, it's more like the time Heibei was kidnapping all those villagers."

"Sokka, you're a genius!" Aang yelled.

"Take that, doubters of my intelligence. Zuko," Sokka said, smirking.

"It fits, but how do we know it was from the Spirit World?" Katara argued.

"Well, Mai would be able to easily fight off any mortals who tried to attack her," Ty Lee pointed out. "But if it was a spirit, she would be powerless against it."

"Sokka's right; they have to be from the Spirit World," Toph said.

"I can get us there. Just be ready to leave at dawn tomorrow," Aang instructed.

"But, Zuko. You can't just leave. You're the Fire Lord," Ty Lee reminded him.

"I'll fill in for him," Iroh offered, emerging from the kitchen, carrying a tray of unrecognizable things, burned to charcoal. "I'll tell them you needed a vacation because they kept pressuring you to kill Azula. Time to clear your head and relax. It'll also explain Mai's disappearance to them."

"I'll stay back and help Uncle Iroh," Suki offered. "The Spirit World is no place for me. Ty Lee, will you help me?" Ty Lee nodded.

"Just thinking about going there is giving me the chills. I have a bad feeling about this," she shuddered.

"So it's settled. Me, Aang, Katara, Toph, and Sokka will leave at dawn for the Spirit World," Zuko said.

"And make sure to use the bathroom before you leave," Sokka chimed in. Aang and Katara nodded, taking him seriously for once.

"Why are you taking him seriously?" Ty Lee wondered.

"Sokka's actually been to the Spirit World," Katara explained. "He was taken by Heibei that time."

"And I bet that panda statue is the key to getting there. When me and Sokka went to the Spirit World using it, our physical bodies didn't remain behind," Aang said.

!~!~!~!~!~!~!

"Good luck!" Suki called as Appa's large figure quickly grew smaller unitl it was no more than a speck in the sky.

Everyone turned to face a lumpy bear-shaped statue in the middle of the clearing in the center of the lush forest surrounding them on all sides.

"Heibei, we need your help," Aang said into thin air. "We need to travel to the Spirit World." Almost immediately, a panda appeared from nowhere, lumbering towards them.

"We need to be in physical contact for Heibei in order for him to transport us," Aang translated the panda's grunting noises. Noticing the blank looks he got from the rest of them, he said, "We need to touch the panda to go into the Spirit World."

Obediently, they touched Heibei's soft fur, and were enveloped in a flash of blue light.


End file.
